The present invention relates to heat exchangers, and more particularly to the type of heat exchanger in which two fluids at different temperatures are caused to flow on either side of a folded plate or sheet so that heat is transported through the folds from one fluid to the other.
British Patent Specification No. 320,279 discloses a folded plate heat exchanger applicable to the heat exchange between liquids and gases. The liquid and gas flow on respective sides of a single folded plate, which is enclosed within a housing which in turn is connected to a support surface. The proportion of the weight and materials associated with the housing and support results in a high materials and fabrication cost per unit of heat transfer capability. Moreover, this design is not easily adapted for utilizing a plurality of stacked or modular folded plates to realize greater efficiency and handle large volumes of gas to gas heat exchange.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,042,018 discloses a packaging system for gas to gas counter flow heat exchangers in which individual heat exchanger modules are located adjacent to each other within a housing. A plurality of plenum chambers are partially defined by suitably arranged baffles to direct the gas flow to the appropriate sides of the folded plates.
Although known heat exchanger packages of the type represented by the '018 patent operate effectively for their intended purpose, they are characterized by relative inefficiencies with respect to the amount, fabrication, and assembly of the materials and components utilized in manufacturing.